Furniture in corridor outcropping

[Darren Zettler]

Good morning:
I am dealing with a building (apartment buiding for seniors, not a retirement home) that has long corridors with an exit at each end and an elevator in the middle. The building is 6 stories tall but not a high building as per the definition. Across from the elevator is an area that juts out from the corriodor approximately 2 to 3 meters wide and 3 to 4 meters deep. You could think of it as a lounge or elevator lobby. In that area there is a bunch of furniture, wooden and upholstered. There is no wall, door or fire separation from this ‘room’ to the rest of the corridor. The front of the room is completely open to the corridor, no partial wall or anything.
Would you consider this combustibles in a means of egress? Do you believe that this is a ‘safe’ situation? Would you write an Inspection Order to remove the furniture and contents?
We have experienced a large fire where one or two couches (tenants left them in a corridor) were ignited (most likely by a ‘firebug’) and the resulting fire took out the whole corridor and resulted in more than a million dollars of damage and the floor needing a one year renovation before becoming livable again.
Any thoughts or advice is appreciated.

I can send a picture or drawing if you email me at DZettler@brantford.ca

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